Panthers sign kick off specialist

The Panthers have apparently solved the “who will replace Rhys Lloyd as kick off specialist” dilemma by signing Todd Carter to a 1-year contract at the league minimum [$320K]. Rhys Lloyd would have cost the team approximately $1.1M this season, so they decided that a KOS just wasn’t worth that much money and went with the cheaper option.

The Carolina Panthers signed a potential replacement for kickoff specialist Rhys Lloyd on Tuesday, adding kicker Todd Carter of Grand Valley State. Carter, who played at Grand Valley from 2005-2008, converted 12 of 17 field goals and 56 of 58 extra points as a senior. However, leg strength is his forte and he has a chance to replace Lloyd, who signed as a free agent this off-season with Minnesota, in the kickoff role.

Whew! I’m glad that crisis is averted. I don’t know what I would have done had the team entered training camp with no kick off specialist. In the event Carter doesn’t work out, it appears that punter Jason Baker would then handle kick off duties for 2010.